Capital Compression - Arnout De Cleene, Michiel De Cleene

This somewhat inscrutable object was a pleasant surprise to the jury. A nineteen-line, chopped-up poem inspired by blockchain technology, a series of twenty photos and an essay run through one another in two separate, cord-bound booklets. The two parts contrast strongly with one another, but also fold into one another in a natural way. The translucent paper on which the text section The Glow is printed, in a sharp red, allows the rigorously printed text to be perceived from the outside before the booklet has even been opened. It is thanks also to this secure typesetting that the essay on these pages is very legible, and that this choice of paper in no way detracts from the whole. The plastic envelope that holds the two booklets may not be highly inventive, but is a strong solution, and which with its own printed text puts the finishing touch to Capital Compression. The only reservation among the jury was whether a more environmentally friendly option could have been found, which could have achieved the same effect.